surface

Last week, Microsoft claimed Consumer Reports’ decision to yank recommendations for its laptops was based on bad data. A leaked memo has revealed this as a lie; Microsoft’s rate of return on some products has been quite high.

Microsoft is closing its Surface Hub manufacturing facility in Wilsonville, Oregon, barely two years after opening it. Instead of being manufactured in the US, future Surface Hubs will be built in China.

Reviews of the new Surface Pro are surprisingly weak — weaker than we’ve seen for Microsoft’s flagship tablet in the past. This minor point update takes a few steps forward, but it wasn’t what reviewers were collectively looking for.

Microsoft’s previous hardware efforts have always made good sense if you were in a niche whose needs they were designed to meet. The new Surface Laptop takes everything good about previous Surface products and flushes it.

Microsoft’s overall quarterly results were excellent, but the company’s hardware divisions were a different story. Decline in the Xbox market is expected, but a huge drop in Surface sales doesn’t look good. Meanwhile, Windows 10 Mobile is barely on life support.